Shanks: Atlanta Braves GM Alex Anthopoulos must take calls ahead of trade deadline

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10 hours ago

Every team in every sport at every level goes into a season knowing things are going to happen. There will be injuries, players may not meet expectations, and even off-the-field issues can come into play to make it difficult to make it through a season.
But what the Atlanta Braves have been through since the start of the 2024 season is almost cruel. It's been one thing after the other, and not much has been positive.
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Now, let's not bury the lead here. The main reason the Braves are below .500 and are having a disappointing season is they cannot hit. The offense is embarrassing, and it's hard to believe even part of this lineup was in place two years ago when the 2023 offense set records.
Wednesday's news that Spencer Schwellenbach had a fracture in his elbow was almost comical. Not funny ha-ha, but funny leaving you incredulous that this just can't be happening again.
The first four starting pitchers for the Braves that started the season are all now out. Chris Sale won't be eligible to return until August 19 as he deals with a broken rib. Reynaldo Lopez had shoulder surgery April 8, and there is no clue when or if he'll return this season. Schwellenbach was third, and there is no guarantee he'll be back unless the elbow heals quickly. And game four starter AJ Smith-Shawver had Tommy John elbow surgery and is out for the rest of 2025.
So, the Braves can't hit, and now 80-percent of the opening day starting rotation is out.
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Good luck.
The Braves went 11-15 in June and did little to help their chances of recovering from the 0-7 start to get back in the pennant race. It's July now, so along with everything else going on, the calendar is becoming Atlanta's enemy. Sure, they came back from being 10.5 games back of the Mets to win the NL East in 2022, but they started their run in early-June and it took four months to reach first place.
Alex Anthopoulos, Atlanta's general manager, will have decisions to make. The All-Star Game is in Atlanta in two weeks, so Anthopoulos will likely wait until the sport leaves town. But when it all settles, and if the Braves are still way far behind, Anthopoulos needs to make some trades.
And he doesn't need to add to the roster for a run at another playoff appearance; Anthopoulos instead needs to push reset and prepare for next season.
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There is zero guarantee that Schellenbach and Lopez can return this season, and if the Braves aren't in a pennant race, the discussion should be whether shutting them down would be the best decision. Sale's status is unclear. Anthopoulos said on 680 the Fan in Atlanta on June 19 there was no chance he would trade Sale, but he did leave a caveat of if 'you get to late July and things are completely changed, I guess we would re-evaluate it. But it would have to be extreme.'
Two days after that interview, Anthopoulos and the Braves learned Sale broke his rib and now we know he won't be back until late-August. Now, the Schwellenbach injury. Is this extreme enough, or will Anthopoulos, who has never been in a sell-mode in his seven-plus years as Atlanta's GM, simply wait to see what the record and deficit is into late-July?
Could Anthopoulos's words be the Braves' equivalent of 'Read my lips. No new taxes?'
How can the Braves survive July with this rotation? Spencer Strider is now the number one, followed by Grant Holmes. Strider is coming back from the major injury, and Holmes has never had a full season as a MLB starter. Bryce Elder, originally slated for Triple-A this season, is now the number three starter.
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Rookie and barely-20-year-old Didier Fuentes is the fourth starter. The Braves likely wanted him back to Triple-A to get more experience, but they have no choice but to leave him up now. And the fifth starter, well, we'll find out Friday night what they'll do in Schwellenbach's spot.
Here are a few reasons Anthopoulos must listen if he gets calls on his players. First, the injuries to the starters will create tremendous uncertainty next spring. All of those pitchers are going to have to prove they can stay healthy, and that's not been easy or any of them. Sale has been brittle for the last decade, while Lopez has been on the injured list three times in two years.
Also, the Atlanta farm system does not have adequate position player prospects who can step in and become starters anytime soon. Since he signed many of the position players to long-term deals, Anthopoulos instead focused on pitching in the draft the last few years. There are a few position player prospects in the lower levels, but none are close to being ready.
For example, the Braves may need a new second baseman next season if they do not pick up the team option on Ozzie Albies. Nacho Alvarez, who has mainly played shortstop in the minors, could possibly move there, but he's not a highly-rated prospect. There is no shortstop close to being ready, and that will have to be addressed this winter. And if Michael Harris II doesn't rebound, will the Braves need a new center fielder?
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The Braves would have to find those replacements through trades, and if they put some of the veterans on the market in late-July, they could find answers to some of those questions about the future.
And don't panic with this, but what if a team called about Ronald Acuña, Jr.? Anthopoulos would have to listen. Acuna, Jr. has one year and then two more team options seasons keeping him under control through 2028. But if Anthopoulos does not get a guarantee from owner Terry McGuirk that the funds will be there to keep him a Brave for life, he cannot let Acuna, Jr. walk out the door like Freddie Freeman, Dansby Swanson and Max Fried all did without getting anything in return.
Listening doesn't mean Anthopoulos has to pull the trigger on deals, but the extreme has happened with the rotation now looking weak. The one part propping up this team while the offense has struggled in now going to be one big Band-Aid. And the tremendous challenge the Braves had to get back into this race may have just become impossible.
Listen to The Bill Shanks Show weekdays on The SuperStations – 103.7 FM in Savannah and online at TheSuperStations.com. Email Bill at [e-mail].
This article originally appeared on Savannah Morning News: Injuries could force Atlanta Braves to sell at MLB trade deadline